By Mark Baber
October 2 – Whilst many stakeholders have supported Tuesday’s election of Amaju Pinnick as the new Nigerian Football Federation (NFF) president in the hope he will bring stability to Nigeria’s conflict-riven football administration, one of the losing candidates has claimed the election was bought and Chris Giwa has reiterated his message that it is he who remains the legitimate NFF President.
Pinnick has promised to bring Nigeria’s football administrators together, “because we need everybody’s input to reclaim our position in world football,” and following his election he has appealed “to all stakeholders to join hands in the rebuilding of the game because it is one thing that brings all Nigerian together.”
Pinnick has important backing in his task from the Director General of the National Sports Commission, Gbenga Elegbeleye who declared at Tuesday’s congress that the federal government will collaborate with the new board of the NFF in developing the game in the country and from the Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Sports, Hon. Godfrey Gaya who said the National Assembly is in full support of the election.
However, one of the losing candidates in Warri, former international, Dominic Iorfa has alleged the election was corrupt saying: “I want to say without fear of contradiction that people who have money to share to delegates won the elections. I sensed danger but since my co-contestants chose to keep silent, I said nothing.”
Explaining why he did not congratulate Pinnick on his victory, Iorfa, who came a distant second in both the first and second rounds of Tuesday’s election said: “I’ll never embrace him. He is not better than me. He did not beat me. Money won and not him. People sold their souls for money and you want me to embrace and hug him? I don’t pretend. I’ll never embrace him.”
Meanwhile, Chris Giwa, owner of Glo Premier League side, Giwa FC issued a statement saying: “I, Ambassador Christopher Giwa, the President of the Nigeria Football Federation elected into office on the 26th August 2014 at the Chida Hotel in Abuja remains the head of the nation’s football governing body.”
Giwa made his feelings clear about Tuesday’s election of Pinnick saying, “It came to our notice that some people gathered in Warri in Delta state to conduct an illegal election.”
The Giwa group has to be taken seriously as they secured an injunction from the Federal High Court in Jos aimed at stopping the congress which set the date for the election of Pinnick, even though the injunction somehow failed to reach anyone in a position to stop that meeting going ahead.
Giwa promises to “pursue the cause of justice, fair play and associated freedom.” According to his statement, “in line with the orders of the Federal High Court, Jos our elected board shall meet on Thursday, 2nd October, 2014 in Abuja where far reaching decisions shall be taken and Nigerians shall be properly briefed of the outcome of the meeting.”
Speaking about those elected on Tuesday, Giwa has told media: ”These are people who have ceased to be members of the NFF since August 25, 2014 when their tenure expired, yet they go about parading themselves as members of the NFF executive committee with the backing of FIFA officials, who are not properly briefed about the situation in Nigeria, but are being fed with lies.”
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